“Rest well through the daylight hours,” the Master replied,
ignoring Elliot’s comment, “tomorrow night’s ride, though
our last for a while, will be arduous.”
“Your rides have come to an end, old man,” said Nathan,
as the three apprentices surrounded their Master, their
fangs and nails extending. They fell upon him as one,
slashing and biting with a fury and rage that overpowered
him, despite the fact that his age gave him the greater
strength. As his struggles became weaker, their bites
became more sustained, draining off his precious blood
more and more with each bite. Their attack was relentless
and the more of his blood they shared the stronger they
became. The sky was beginning to lighten in the east, and
Elliot broke off his attack to retrieve a satchel they had
brought back to the cave with them. He turned it over,
spilling four wooden stakes and four lengths of chain out
onto the ground. The Master, seeing the tools of his
imminent destruction redoubled his efforts but it was to
no avail. Working together, Nathan and Julien stretched
out the Master’s right arm, and Elliot threaded the stake
through the links in the chain, looped it around the
Master’s wrist and, using his fist, pounded the stake
securely into the ground. When all four stakes were
successfully driven into the ground, the three stepped back
to admire their work.
“We shall see the world as we intend,” said Elliot as they
retired to the cool darkness of the caves.
The Master lay quietly. Perhaps, he thought, this day had
always been coming. His inability to train them had
become his undoing, and maybe all along, he had known
that this would be his end. Perhaps he felt he owed his
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